how to be a human being; hirofumi yoshida

i.

With her arms crossed over her chest, Saki tried to make it seem like she was listening, but the lady standing before her was intimidatingly pretty. Her words were soft and easy to follow, but for the life of her, Saki couldn't focus on anything, but the way Makima's eyes were ringed in gold and her crimson red hair spilled down her back in the perfect braid. The fact that she hadn't been around other humans for as long as she had lived certainly didn't help - as she was far too entranced by watching someone other than herself in the mirror.

"Are you listening, Saki-chan?" Makima asked lightly with a little tilt of her head, clearly teasing her.

 Stupidly bright pink rose on her cheeks, yet Saki acted like she wasn't embarrassed and was very much listening. "Yes, Makima-san. I apologize if it seems like I wasn't, it's just... this is new to me."

"Hmm? Being in an office building like this?"

"No," she paused, trying to curve her embarrassment with confidence, "Being around other people. You know it's been - no, it was just me and..."

"Your mother, correct?" Makima finished for her, a smile on her face.

"Yes, my mother." Her words were quieter than she wanted them to be. "She never took me around humans."

Makima hummed, "I figured as much. Especially since you couldn't stop staring at everyone you passed on the way up to my office. Oh, would you like anything to drink before we continue? The drive here was particularly long."

Her stomach panged in hunger, yet Saki remained firm. There was no use in eating now when she would be given the freedom to wander around the city soon enough; her mother had told her about all the wonders of city food, of taiyaki sold at stalls and crepes sold from trucks, of green tea flavored with pearls and of pudding sold in cups drizzled in caramel. This was the start of her new life and she wanted to take in as much as possible.

"No, thank you. I would much rather know where I'm headed after this."

The smile on Makima's lips turned a bit sad, making Saki's stomach drop - she knew her life would be different, and she had to brace herself for what she was about to hear. There was no telling what life would be like from now on, only that it would be different.

"Seeing as your adoptive mother was a devil," Makima started - Saki clenched her fists, having always regarded her mother as a mother and nothing more - paused to observe her action, then continued, "We will need to keep you under observation. There is no telling what kind of devils or devil hunters might come after you and the information you possess. Your mother was one of the more feared devils, you know."

A curt nod. "I am well aware."

"Then, you should at the very least be pleased to know Public Safety will be overseeing your living arrangements and enrollment in Fourth East High School to ensure you receive an education. You will be given the key to an apartment not too far from your school, as well as funds to make the place your own. Someone from Public Safety will check in on you now and then, but we have asked a private devil hunter to act as a bodyguard of sorts for you. Seeing as he also attends the high school you will be going to, I hope the two of you will get along," Makima ended her speech with a soft smile and the inaudible signal for whoever had been waiting outside the door to enter.

The door opened smoothly and soundlessly, and Saki would have never noticed had Makima's gaze not fitted to the space behind her, revealing a tall, young man with numerous piercings in each ear and a steady expression on his face. His black hair fell messily into his eyes, and he did nothing to move it out of the way, and his formidable gaze landed right on her, making Saki's back unconsciously straighten at the sudden eye contact. She did not falter under his inquisitive stare, but soon began to get distracted by the little, human things about him - and so all words meant for her to hear once more fell on deaf ears.

"Saki-chan," Makima's voice broke through her thoughts with ease, catching her attention, "This is Yoshida Hirofumi. He will act as your bodyguard and classmate. Please rely on him if you ever enter a dangerous situation."

"Thank you," Saki quickly bowed to Makima, then turned back to Yoshida and did the same, "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Almost hesitantly, she turned back to Makima and asked, "Did I do that right?"

"You did."

With a smile - one of her firsts ever since she arrived in the city - Saki turned back to Yoshida, who gave her a little smile of his own. Her smile slipped off as she realized she wasn't as comfortable with the human before her quite yet, but she tried to maintain a semblance of a polite expression as she said, "My name is Saki. Thank you for guarding me."

"You can call me Yoshida," he said in return, extending a hand.

She glanced at his hand, then at his face, then finally at Makima. Both him and her appeared amused, until one of them prompted her with the direction for what she needed to do next.

"When someone extends their hand, you shake it as a sign of good will," Makima explained, "There aren't many who do so in Japan, so this is a rare case."

Saki nodded in understanding, placing her hand in Yoshida's and meeting his eyes with what she hoped was gratitude, but didn't pull her hand away. She didn't know how long their hands were supposed to stay together, so Yoshida was the one who ended up pulling his hand back, even more amused than he had previously been. It irked her that there were many things she knew about humans, but not so much about human customs and how interacting with them would go. She felt like a second-rate human and was determined to crawl her way up to first-rate by her own hands.

She was determined to prove she was just as human as everyone else in the room.

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hello, so yes, i started another hirofumi fic. i am v much in love with him, i can't get this stupidly pretty man out of my head. please enjoy this story as much as i enjoy looking at him. idk how often i'll update so please keep in mind it might be a bit between uploads lol.

thank you for reading and have a great day!